This invention relates to computer systems and more particularly, to a browser user interface for a client workstation in a client/server environment in which the client workstation utilizes a web browser type interface for mission critical applications and takes advantage of other web browser interface functions and features.
In the past, user interfaces to various computer applications have utilized custom designed, application specific, graphical and non-graphical user interfaces. The problems with these custom design graphical or non-graphical user interfaces are that they are not industry standard, often have a significant training or learning time, and non-uniform product behavior.
Graphical or non-graphical user interfaces must include specific binary code for each computer or operating system type which will utilize the interface. Although such interface code may reside on either a personal computer (PC) or on a file server, this separate network protocol is necessary for distribution of the operating interface. In addition, each computer running the interface will generate its own separate temporary files.
Given the significant volume of software now running on most computers, an additional software package which has its own xe2x80x9clook and feelxe2x80x9d will require training of the users to become familiar with the software package.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide an industry standard, uniformly looking, uniformly behaving and uniformly accepted user interface for a mission critical application such as a telephony or other application.
The present invention features a system including a web browser based operation critical client workstation. The system includes a server computer including at least one web server, for servicing a number of connected web browser based client workstations. At least one client workstation is connected to this server computer and responsive to the web server, receives web browser based information and displays web browser based information in a web page browser format. The web based information received by the client workstation includes operation critical application information which is interactively displayed and utilized to perform an operation critical application directly from the client workstation.
In one embodiment, the operation critical application can include a telephony application such as inbound telephone call servicing, outbound telephone call servicing or a combination of inbound and outbound telephone call servicing applications. The client workstation can include an agent workstation or an agent supervisor workstation. In addition, the operation critical application information may include audio and display animation information.
The invention also features a web browser based operation critical agent workstation for a telephony system which includes a server computer having at least a web server, for servicing a number of connected web browser based client workstations. Also included is at least one telephony system web browser based agent workstation which is coupled to the server computer and responsive to the web server. The at least one telephony system web browser based agent workstation receives web browser based information and displays the information in a web page browser format. The information received includes operation critical application information which is interactively displayed and utilized to perform an operation critical application such as a telephony application.
In this embodiment, the web browser based agent workstation may include a script wizard, for allowing a user to generate at least one non-proprietary, industry standard active telephony object to handle a telephony application, and a host communication wizard, for allowing the user to generate at least one host connection active object to handle information exchange between the telephony system web browser based agent workstation and a host computer.
In another embodiment, the present invention includes a web browser based operation critical client workstation wherein at least one client workstation is coupled to a web server of a server computer. In response to the web server, at least one client workstation receives web browser based information and displays the information on a web page browser format. The information received by the client workstation includes operation critical application information allowing a user at the client workstation to operate and control the operation critical application from the client workstation. In this embodiment, the client workstation may store persistent data to be used by the workstation within the workstation, for later reuse without accessing the server computer. In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the invention features a web browser based client workstation, coupled to a web server, for executing HTML code and for displaying information in a web page browser format. The client workstation further includes a HTML code generator, for generating on the client workstation, web browser based HTML code for display and operation on the client workstation. In this embodiment, the HTML code generator may further include a script wizard, for allowing a user to generate at least one non-proprietary, industry standard active object to control an application. This embodiment may further include a host communication wizard, for allowing a user to generate at least one host connection, active object, to handle information exchange between the web browser based client workstation and a host computer.
Another embodiment of the present invention features a telephony system including a web browser based operation critical agent workstation and web browser based scripting. The system includes a server computer having at least a web server, for servicing a number of connected web browser based agent workstations. At least one agent workstation is coupled to the server computer and responsive to the web server for receiving web browser based information and for displaying the information in a web page browser format. The information received by the telephony system web browser based agent workstation includes operation critical telephony application information which is interactively displayed and utilized to perform a telephony operation critical application.
In this embodiment, the web browser based information received by the agent workstation includes web browser based scripting information, for providing at least one script page to be displayed on the agent workstation, for providing information to be communicated to a telephony system customer, and for allowing an agent at the agent workstation to input information regarding the telephony system customer in at least one location in the script page displayed. A further feature of this embodiment may include a number of script pages at least two of which can be displayed in a logical branch structure. In this embodiment, at least a first one of the script pages includes a predetermined message text comprising at least one question having at least two possible responses. The agent workstation causes a branch to at least a second script page based on an agent""s indication of a response to the question in the predetermined message text of the first script page.
In yet another embodiment, the present invention features a telephony system including a web browser based operation critical agent workstation coupled to a computer server including at least a web server. The telephony system web browser based agent workstation receives web browser based information and displays the information in a web page browser format on the workstation. The web page information received by the agent workstation includes operation critical application information which is interactively displayed and utilized to perform a telephony operation critical application.
This embodiment also includes an agent workstation with a script wizard, for allowing a user to generate at least one non-proprietary, industry standard, telephony active object, as well as a host communication wizard, for allowing the user to generate at least one host connection active object for handling information exchange between the telephony system web browser based agent workstation and a host computer. Further, in this embodiment, the operation critical application information includes display of web browser based information for allowing the agent workstation to control both voice and data relative to at least one telephony call.
The present invention features, in another embodiment, a web browser based operation critical client workstation, coupled to a server computer, for receiving and displaying information received from the server computer in a web page browser format. The information received by the web browser based operation critical client workstation includes operation critical application information. In this embodiment, the server computer includes at least one proxy server, coupled to a source of information external to the server computer, for facilitating access to the data external to the server computer by the client workstation.
In this embodiment, the client workstation includes at least one web browser based web page for communicating with the proxy server on the server computer, for requesting information from the proxy server which is external to the server computer, and for receiving external information from the data source external from the server computer through the proxy server. A further feature of this embodiment allows the web browser based client workstation to access data from multiple sources generally simultaneously, and to display on one web page of the web browser based client workstation the data from multiple sources generally simultaneously.
The present invention additionally includes a system including a web browser based operation critical client workstation wherein the client workstation includes at least one client side active object. The at least one client side active object can initiate and control the operation of at least one function without intervention of a server computer or a web server.